


Through The Storm

by Raelae



Series: Tales From The Apocalypse [6]
Category: The Last of Us
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-27
Updated: 2017-09-27
Packaged: 2019-01-05 23:04:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12199179
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raelae/pseuds/Raelae
Summary: After a slight disagreement with Tess, Joel decides he needs to take some time for himself for a bit, heading off to do one of their drops alone. As usual though, things don't always go well for the Texan, and a snowstorm rolls in, leaving him trapped outside the walls in a whiteout. And he's not the only one trapped by the storm. Just how will he get out of this one?





	Through The Storm

He could hear the crunching of the many feet as they approached him in the deep snow. Just a few more steps and they'd be just outside the doorway where he was hiding.

He took a few deep breaths, moving carefully away from the wall he'd been hunched against, trying his best not to make any noise himself as he walked through the snow that had blown into the building, or to trip over anything the snow was covering.

He'd been stupid and he knew it, Tess would tell him so straight off. He wanted to make this drop alone, wanted a chance to be on his own to cool off from the bickering...hell, lashing, Tess had given him mere hours before. 

One thing he hated most, was anytime they had even the slightest connection with the Fireflies. After all, he blamed them for everything that happened between him and his brother, blamed them for him leaving. Even though, in truth, it was his fault alone. He'd pushed his brother for years to do things he didn't want to do, put him down anytime he made a decision on his own. In his eyes not a lot of Tommy's decisions were good ones, but maybe it was actually the other way around, maybe his weren't the good ones. He'd dragged Tommy around the wasteland even though Tommy wanted to find a QZ to settle in. He forced him to stay with the hunters and do unspeakable things, made him join smuggling when they got into the Boston QZ.

Maybe the Fireflies weren't really to blame, maybe Marlene wasn't really to blame. But they sure were a good placeholder rather than blame himself.

So when Tess came to him and said she'd made a small deal with Marlene, something she rarely did but would on occasion, Joel was immediately against it. His first mistake of course was trying to argue with Tess. That is a battle you never won, Tess had the louder voice after all, and she was mean as a coiled rattlesnake. His second mistake was to antagonize her enough that she crossed that line, brought up Tommy, herself stating the Fireflies weren't to blame. But she had stopped short of saying it was his fault, even she had limits. Neither of them held back ever, with anyone...except each other. They'd formed this strange connection that wouldn't allow for it.

But it had still been enough that Joel needed a break, needed to be away from her for a while and told her so to her face. Then retreated as quickly as he could before she could protest, because he knew he wouldn't win that fight.

So he left to make the days drop alone...as a snowstorm rolled in. The wind kicked up so badly that it caused a whiteout soon as the snow began to fall, blinding him. He literally bumped into the patrols that were just as lost in the storm as him, and just as surprised to see him. It was a long few moments before either side had reacted, guns raising quickly. 

Joel knew he was far outgunned and barely able to see directly in front of himself, so he used the cover of the storm to bolt, knowing full well they would lose him quickly.

They didn't fire after him, as he had hoped they wouldn't. They'd just be wasting ammo since they couldn't see him, so he pushed forward, feeling his way around till he found his way inside the decrepit building.

And here he was now, tiptoeing best he could through the abandoned building, making his way towards where he hoped the back door was.

With the wind blowing as it was, there were no footprints to be seen, so he had complete confidence that they wouldn't just randomly duck into the building, even though they had to of known that that was what he had done. There were just too many buildings to choose, and the storm was just too strong to stay out in for long. The temperature was dropping quickly. Joel hadn't prepared for a long stay in the snow, assuming it would be a quick trip to the drop off point and back, but the squall did as a squall always does, moved in quickly and viciously.

His teeth chattered against one another as he moved his way through the partially caved in rooms, snow dusting in swiftly in the areas that the roof no longer existed. It was piling up quickly, inside and out. At this rate he'd freeze to death if he didn't do something fast.

There were at least three safe houses in the area, but the problem was that he couldn't tell exactly what this area was. Everything looked the same when he could see anything at all. And he obviously didn't recognize buildings he never ducked into before, this one included. He was in a mess of trouble.

He did manage to reach the back door at last though, pausing in the doorway for a moment to formulate some sort of plan. He could not stay out in the storm, couldn't even risk trying to make his way back to his sector since he couldn't see shit. He'd get lost in the whiteout and freeze.

His only hope was to find a stable enough building far enough away from where he ran into the soldiers, he didn't want to risk accidentally hunkering down with them as well. 

Crossing his arms and wrapping them around himself, he pushed back off into the storm, only moderately blocked from the bite of the storm by the narrow pathway of the alley.

He moved back into the street and into the full force of the storm, pushing himself along till he was sure he'd gone quite a few blocks in the opposite direction.

Confident that he was safe enough, he turned and trudged up a pair of steps, struggling with the door of an old Brownstone till it finally gave way and allowed him into the shelter of it's walls.

He shut the door behind him and dusted the snow from himself, taking a moment to allow some feeling to return to his limbs. Luckily they did quickly enough and he was able to move further into the house.

As it was with many homes in and around the zone, items were covered in thick layers of dust and paint was stripped and peeling from the walls. There of course was also the smell of age, though that is the first thing people tend to get use to over time.

A lot of the furniture had begun to decay, holes scattered throughout the upholstered chairs and couches that resided there. Any wooden furniture had been dealt with by termites over time or chopped up long ago by desperate people trying to keep warm in the early years of the outbreak.

The house seemed safe enough though, so he settled down on the old couch, shrugging his backpack off and lying down.

It certainly wasn't the warmest building in the world but, it was far better than being in the elements outside. He just wished he could start a fire in the old fireplace, but that would draw attention for sure. So he was forced to curl up into himself to try to trap his body heat against his body, hoping it would be enough to stave off frostbite.

So far he could feel all his extremities well enough and there was no pain or burning, so he figured he had somehow managed to avoid his limbs and digits turning black and falling off. In the short term anyway. He couldn't say that would be the case in the long run. All he could do was hope this squall would pass quickly enough, though he doubted it.

It was around this time that his stomach decided to growl loudly, even managing to drown out the howling of the storm for a moment. He scowled, not wanting to move from his ball of warmth, but the pains of hunger was more than slightly uncomfortable.

Finally he sat back up, reaching for his bag and pulling out a small square brick wrapped in a light brown package. Military MRE...mmmm...He was far from being a fan of these, especially the hard tack bricks of crackers or whatever they were. But food was food and it would hold him for a while anyway.

He peeled back the wrapper and bit into it, a loud snapping emanating through the quiet living room and causing a slight vibration to pulse through his teeth.

“...like chewing on a rock..” He mumbled as he chewed...attempted to chew.

He was at the bare minimum for food right now, as were so many others in the zone. Winter always sucked in the QZ, rations always dwindling to near zero. Though most knew the military kept a good lot of it, but who was gonna go up against them? They were far from afraid and would just open fire on a group of people just to end a protest. In a world where every life should be cherished they sure didn't give two shits.

He took another bite of the hard tack, looking towards one of the boarded up windows, watching the snow outside between one of the gaps between boards.

The military had long since been a source of contention for him, a sour taste in his mouth. Only one soldier had taken his daughters life, but to him all soldiers became devils after that. And they more than proved him right the way they acted. Hoarding food, still producing products and clothing but denying any of it to the normal people. You rarely saw a soldier or any of their family with thread bare clothing. They were gods among men and they new it. No one dared piss them off...except the Fireflies.

He narrowed his eyes, the corners of his mouth twitching. He didn't hate the Fireflies as much as the military, but it still pissed him off enough when he realized he had to give the Fireflies props for getting under the military's skin. He didn't give a damn about their agenda, didn't care what they did or didn't do, and sure as hell didn't believe they'd come up with the cure for humanity. But they were useful for getting the uniforms to run around in circles for a while, often times unintentionally clearing the path for the smugglers to work free for at least a few hours when they scuffled.

...dammit he hated praising them...but he had to give praise where it was due.

He finished his...whatever it was and crumpled the wrapper, tossing it to the floor. May as well have a look around the place to see if he could find anything useful since he was stuck here for a while.

He slowly pushed himself off the couch, knees creaking as the storm did a number on them. So much for aging gracefully eh?

He moved off towards the kitchen once the pain subsided, looking around at the chaos within. The dust was just as thick in here, paint peeling more so then in the front room. Everything was covered with debris that had chipped from the ceiling, along with empty food cans and broken plates.

He moved over to the counter and started pulling drawers open, finding nothing but garbage or emptiness within. There wasn't a knife in sight, not even so much as a fork. He cursed himself for forgetting his shivs, then immediately blamed it on old age.

Nothing useful remained here, so he moved onward, covering the whole bottom floor and finding nothing. He walked back out to the hallway by the front door, making his way up the creaky stairs.

Every step he took was like scraping your nails across a chalkboard, each step screaming out horribly as though it were being murdered.

The next to scream out was Joel, as his foot went through one of the steps, engulfing his leg almost to the knee.

“Son of a bitch!” He yelled as he grabbed his leg, trying to pull it free from the wooden trap.

Each pull was met with painful scratching as splinters grabbed at his leg, like sharp teeth of a predators mouth, unwilling to let it's prey go.

Finally, with a grimace, he yanked his leg free, tearing up his jeans in the process and cutting up his leg.

“Fuck!”

He hissed as he fell back against the railing, only to push himself forward again as he felt the railing give way behind him. It hit the floor below with a loud bang, parts of the wooden pillars snapping off as it impacted.

“This is just not my day...”

He bit his lip, biting back the stinging pain from his leg as he moved on. Now he was cold, still hungry, and riddled with tiny wooded spikes...and he was lacking his med kit as well. No doubt the splinters of old wood would soon fester, and he'd have a real problem on his hands. If his mind had just been in the right place earlier, he would have never...

He shook his head, pushing the thought away before he could finish it. It was his fault he was in the predicament he was in, not Tess's. He was finally able to admit that. Sure she hadn't helped matters but, he's the one who chose to storm off, grabbing only the most minuscule of supplies, and head alone to the drop. There was just no part of him that was able to blame Tess for anything, which was a strange thing to realize. Even if they did have lines they drew for each other, it still didn't stop him from sometimes using her as the cause for all his stupidity. She got under his skin somehow, so deeply that nothing he did could shake her off.

He stopped at the top of the stairs, gripping the banister tightly as he realized that, somehow, though minor, she grounded him. Sure he still did stupid suicidal things, just look where he was right now. But he was still alive. He hadn't once sat up in the dark of night with a half empty bottle and a gun in his hand, preparing to swallow that bullet, since he met her. It never even crossed his mind.

“...old fool. You let your guard down.”

He sighed, exasperated with himself. Oh well, if he survived this he'd let her chew him out as much as she wished. A forty something year old man getting chewed out by a woman much younger than himself. He always thought it was the elders that were supposed to teach the younger, not the other way around.

With another deep sigh, he moved down the hallway to check each of the upstairs bedrooms, finding two completely ransacked and in the early stages of degeneration. Had to hand it to the old generations, they sure as hell knew how to build something. Standing well over a hundred years and it took an apocalypse to wear it down.

He moved off to the final room, what appeared to be the parents room, and found it in the same dire straights. He looked anyway, hoping something might have been missed. 

Nothing in the dressers, nor under the bed. The clothes that were scattered across the floor were in such bad condition now that they were useless to him, torn up by rodents for their nests.

Finally he moved over to the closet, flicking on his flashlight as he looked inside. Nothing hung inside, nor was anything packed away in the old yellowing plastic storage bins. He was about to give up when he noticed something on the top shelf, tucked back quite a ways so that you wouldn't even notice it with a cursory glance.

He reached up and pulled it down, finding it to be one of those storage bags you vacuum seal. His hopes rose as he took it over to the bed, tearing at it with his fingers till he managed to rip it open.

He was sure if there was a god he'd be thanking him right now, assuming he believed at all that is. There, staring back at him, was some men's winter gear that had been packed away the spring of that dreaded year most likely.

“Please be the right size...”

He pulled them out, inspecting each piece. As much as he should probably use the old knitted hat, it wasn't really him. He wasn't really a hat guy, but he kept it for trading purposes anyway. Next he pulled out a brown jacket, and it looked to be just his fit.

He shrugged off his backpack and ragged coat and slipped this one on, finding that it both fit perfectly, and that it was much warmer than it originally looked. He already felt much, much better.

Next he pulled out a thick pair of gloves, which he was quick to put on, before checking over the final article of clothing.

Well shit, just what he was in need of now that he tore up his jeans, a new pair. And it looked the right size as well. Maybe his luck had finally turned.

He pulled his bag open, folding the jeans up and placing them inside along with the knit hat. His morale had much improved at this point.

With a rare smile on his face, he slipped his backpack on again and took a step towards the door, till a loud creak stopped him in place. He trained his ears, listening again, another creak, it was...above him...

“Oh shit!” He ran for the doorway and darted into the hallway just as the roof over the bedroom gave in, piles of snow falling in and filling the room. Support beams fell all around, blocking the doorway to the room. He knew if that went, the rest of the roof could as well, age and the weight of the snow piling on it taking it's tole. 

Not daring to risk another moment, he ran back down the stairs as again creaking sounded above him. The whole roof was about to go.

He flew out the front door just as it did so, the howling wind deafened momentarily by the loud crashing. Joel barely got out of the way as some of the beams fell over the side, almost drilling him into the ground. There was no way in hell that no one heard that...

He turned and took off running, slipping a few times as his feet tried to gain footing. He needed to find another place to hunker down, but not all the buildings were as accessible as the previous was. The uniforms had gone through a good part of the outer zone sealing up the buildings, and in the blinding snow it was hard to make out which ones were till you were right up to them.

He turned a corner, and found himself on his back before he could even fathom just what in the hell happened. He thought for a moment that he'd slipped on ice, except his face hurt something awful. He reached his hand up and touched below his nose, feeling a thick wet substance. Blood. He knew now and tried quickly to get back to his feet, but he felt a weight slam down on his chest, hands wrapping around his throat and cutting off his breathing.

“Fucking straggler! Or maybe you're a goddamned Firefly!”

Joel figured the guy couldn't tell the difference since he couldn't see him all that well, couldn't tell if he wore a Firefly emblem or not. But he also figured the soldier didn't give two shits. He just straight up wanted to kill him no questions asked.

Joel reached out and grabbed his wrists, trying desperately to pull his hands from his throat. But the soldier had surprise on his side from the start, and so had a good tight grip on him before he could do much about it.

Joel was struggling for breath now, white spots starting to dance before his eyes. If he blacked out he was good and done for.

He released his grip on the soldiers wrists now and brought his hands together, fisting one and wrapping his other hand around it. He brought it down with all his might on the soldiers wrists, causing the soldier to scream out and his wrists to buckle, pulling him closer to Joel. Joel kept his wrists tight over the soldiers while he hooked his ankle around the soldiers, using it to turn him over. He finally released the wrists, only to bring his right fist down over and over on his face, beating it in to a bloody pulp.

He barely had time to catch his breath before bullets whizzed by his head, the aim of the other soldiers thrown off by the blowing snow.

He stumbled back off the dead soldier, flailing on all fours as he tried to clamber back to his feet and make a run for it. By the time he did, a few more soldiers joined their buddies, firing after him now as well. They didn't care if they wasted bullets now trying to hit him, he'd killed one of their own and they were pissed.

He wasn't sure how many of them there was now, or why they even gave a shit to risk coming out in this to get him, but he wasn't going to wait around to find answers to those questions.

He cried out as his right arm stung, a bullet managing to find it's mark. He grit his teeth and moved on, not sure yet if the bullet and just grazed him, or embedded itself in him. He didn't have time to look. But he did know that he had more then enough injuries that were going to cause a serious problem if he didn't get back inside the wall.

He could hear them yelling from behind, their voices not very far off. The dumb asses were chasing him. This storm really wasn't going to deter them now, they wanted his blood.

A shot rang out, and then another, but he didn't hear the familiar sound of the bullets breaking the air around him, instead he heard a couple of the men yell out behind him.

Another screamed, the sound of his voice indicating that he was facing away from him, he was swearing at someone.

A gunshot...another death scream.

And then his arm, his gunshot arm, was grabbed and yanked.

Before he could react he was pulled off the street and into a side alley where he finally gained his composure and he grabbed the wrist that grabbed him, yanking them around and slamming them against the wall of one of the buildings.

He raised his fist to punch when realization hit him, he held his fist in the air, slowly relaxing it.

“How in the hell...?”

“Christ Texas, you trying to break my back or something?”

“What the hell are you doing out here?”

“Finding your dumb ass.”

“THIS WAY! THEY COULDN”T HAVE GOTTEN FAR!”

“You wanna keep standing here, or do you wanna get out of sight before the fill us full of holes?”

“...” He let Tess go and they took off down the alley, leaving the men screaming and swearing behind them.

 

After they'd gotten what they considered a good amount of distance, Tess pulled Joel into another alleyway, leading him along till she came to a door in the side of a building.

“Wanna help me with this Texas?”

He nodded and turned so he was using his good arm, and together the two of them slammed against the door till it popped open.

They stepped inside quickly, shutting the door and quickly barricading it behind them with some old work tables and whatever else heavy enough they could find.

“Well, that should hold for a while. Now get your ass over here so I can look at those wounds of yours.”

Joel complied as she lead him to a back office. It looked like it was an old bookstore or something, with a good lot of the shelves still standing, many still filled with books.

“Hey, quit gawking and get in here, or do you plan on a bit of light reading while you bleed everywhere?”

He grunted and walked through the doorway, pulling up a chair and sitting by the worn old desk in the office.

Tess already had her bag open, and had pulled the med kit out already, picking through the items she'd be needing.

“Sure looks like you were prepared.”

“Course I was, this is you we're talking about. Although normally when I stumble on you after you go on one of your loner missions, you tend to be bleeding from everywhere with your brain barely keeping it's place in your skull.”

“You shouldn't have come out here Tess.”

“Oh? And why's that? Are you still pissed off about earlier? Suck it the fuck up.”

“Not what I'm getting at. You had to of saw that storm coming in, you shoulda stayed put.”

“Well, when have I ever listened to reason?”

“And you bitch at me...”

“Hey, I'm stubborn, your suicidal, there is a difference.”

He scowled as she grabbed the alcohol and motioned for him to take his jacket off. He did so, though reluctantly as the bite of the air hit him right away.

“I'll be quick. You've been out here this long, figure you can handle the cold a bit longer.”

He said nothing as she started to check the wound on his arm, getting to cleaning around the area before grabbing something sharp out of the kit and pouring alcohol on that as well.

“Alright, looks like I'm gonna have to dig it out. You're lucky though, doesn't look like it's near anything important. Don't need you bleeding out on me.”

“Just get on with it Tess, it's fucking cold.”

She smirked a bit and got to digging around to get the bullet out. By this point Joel was a stone statue when it came to having bullets dug out, he'd been shot so often over the years he was surprised he hadn't become completely numb to it. Still, he turned his head away, not wanting to show even the slightest twinge of pain.

“As odd as it is to hear this from me...I am sorry about earlier.” Tess said without looking up, drawing his attention back to her.

“Excuse me?”

“Said I'm sorry okay? I didn't mean...to bring all that back up. I know how much you like the past to stay buried. You just...infuriate me sometimes.”

“Sometimes?”

“Don't get cocky with me Texas, I am digging around in you with a sharp object, I could have an accident and slip.”

“You wouldn't dare. You'd never risk loosing you precious Pit Bull.”

“Precious Pit...” She paused for a moment and let a laugh escape, pulling the blade away as she did so. “You think I couldn't find another brute to do your job?”

“I'm saying you wouldn't want to. Admit it, I'm the only person you've ever worked with that you actually trust.”

She thought her answer over for a minute before returning to her work.

“Possibly. I mean, I haven't killed you yet.”

“What? You kill the others?”

“Three of them.”

She said that so casually and so quickly that it caused him to pause a moment.

“Seriously?”

“God no.” She yanked the bullet out at that moment, dropping it to the desk. “Was four actually.”

“...I almost thought you were fucking with me for a minute.”

“I'm surprised you thought I just broke contact with all my partners no questions asked. You know I don't like to be fucked with, they stabbed me in the back, figuratively. I stabbed them in the back for real.”

“I'm surprised anyone chooses to work with you anymore.”

“I always got the job done, and I got it done well. For most people it was worth the risk. Hell, half of them are druggies looking for a hit so they'll employ anyone. I'm not stupid enough to raid uniforms though. I'm actually surprised passing off outdated meds worked...”

“Mind over matter.”

“Nah. Half the idiots are druged up so much they can't feel shit anymore. They can't tell the difference because they're about to croak.”

“Sure, I'll take that explanation.”

She shook her head and stitched and wrapped his arm before letting him put his jacket on.

“Now, let me see that leg.”

“...I can probably do that myself...”

“Joel, just roll up your pant leg.”

He rolled his eyes and did as he was told, hissing as the fabric rubbed against the tiny splinters still protruding from his leg.

“The hell...how did you...?”

“Went through the stairs...”

“Leave it to you you big lug.”

She quietly got to work pulling each tiny little splinter from his leg, and even some rather large ones. This felt far worse than the bullet since there were so many and it was taking a great deal of time. Not to mention they stung like a son of a bitch coming out, just as they had going in.

But he made no sound as he watched her work. She had his leg propped up on her lap, working very carefully and making sure she got each and every one of them. This was probably the first time ever that he saw an almost stoic look on her face. Her face was set in concentration, letting what he assumed was a bit of the old Tess, slip out. She didn't look mean, or underhanded right now, just...just looked like an average everyday person.

...somehow that scared him even more than terror Tess.

“I can feel you eyes on me you know. What are you trying to figure out there Texas?”

“...uh...you just...not use to seeing you that way. Even when you're relaxing you're...not relaxing.”

“I learn from the best of them I suppose. I don't think you've relaxed one bit in decades.”

“...could say that. Couldn't even relax before all this.”

She stopped for a moment, looking up at him. She waited to see if maybe, just maybe he might reveal a little more about himself, but instead he went silent, so she went back to work.

Neither said anything to each other now for what felt like an eternity. He'd almost done it, he'd almost given himself away. He had to try to keep that in check better. No one needed to know anything, not even Tess. Besides, god only knew how much longer either of them would still be breathing, no use breaking walls and then getting pissed later when one of them keeled over.

Tess seemed no different in that respect. She said nothing of herself to him, and in turn never pushed him to. His business was his and hers was hers. That's just how it was.

So why did he feel so differently about it now?

“...reckon you were pretty young when it all went down, huh?”

Her head shot up and she looked at him, one brow quirked.

Well good job there, speaking the obvious, he berated himself.

“...sorry, just...too quiet in here. Tired of listening to that damn storm so...just said anything.”

“It's too quiet...but too loud with the storm? How does that work? You getting a fever there Tex?”

“...never mind. Forget I said anything.”

“...yeah. Obviously.” She lowered her head again, continuing with her work. “I was nineteen...striking out on my own...about as lost as anyone that age. Nothing special happened to me that damned day, and nothing special happened to me before it. I was just a normal person like everyone else, bored shitless of the meager life I was living...coulda chosen a better adventure though...”

“...”

“Anyway, it all went down...and no matter how I tried...I couldn't make it back home. Never saw my family again...same story as a lot of people.”

Joel scowled a bit, eyes falling to where his broken watch lay covered by the sleeve of his jacket. This of course didn't go unnoticed by Tess.

“...you don't have to say anything if you don't want to Texas.”

“Why did you?”

“...because sometimes...it gets too hard to keep it held in and you have to tell somebody...”

She finished up and started to clean his leg up. He moved his eyes back to her, watching. Another thing he always noticed about her, she took care when patching him up, almost like he was some precious doll that would break if handled incorrectly. Problem is that he already was broken.

His fingers fell to his sleeve now, ghosting over the watch beneath.

“...everyone lost someone I suppose...I think it's...it's worse to lose a child...”

She looked back up at him now, expression greatly changed.

“...you were a father...weren't you?”

He nodded, squeezing his eyes shut. “And I fucked that up real good.”

“No one imagined this would happen Joel, you can't blame yourself.”

“Soldier shot her...I couldn't block it...”

“Hey, hey...” She reached up and set her hands on either side of his face, an action that shocked them both and caused an awkward moment of silence, but she didn't remove them. “You did what you could...you did everything you could. The soldier caused it, not you. I guess...I can see why you hate them so much now...”

“Doesn't matter now anyway, whats done is done. Can't change that, and lamenting over it won't help either.” He pulled his face away and moved the chair back, getting up. 

“...sounds quieter. Storm must have let up.”

“Which means we better get moving while we can. The soldiers will be moving too and I'd rather not get caught by them again.”

“Joel...”

“Tess, don't. I'm fine.”

She sighed and started to pack up her things, sliding them back into her bag. Joel rolled his pant leg back down in the meantime, trying to avoid her gaze. He'd broken his own rule, his number one rule. Don't talk about it. But also his number two rule, don't break down your walls.

Tess slid her bag back on and stepped over to the doorway where Joel still stood. “Well, lets get moving Texas. I think I'm gonna have to work out another drop point or something, not going to be able to come back this way for a while.”

Before he could stop himself, Joel's hand shot out, grabbing her wrist gently. She turned her head and looked at him, clearly confused.

“I appreciate this...you listening...always...patching my dumb ass up. I don't...I don't think it'd ever get done if you weren't around...”

“...not like you to get all mushy Joel.”

“Not like you to open up.”

“You neither...”

~Fuck it.~

He pulled her arm gently, bringing her closer and closing his eyes so he wouldn't see her surprised look, it might just make him chicken out. He settled his lips on hers as gently as he could, despite everything that was going through him right at that moment. 

His whole body relaxed when she returned it, calming the anxieties he didn't even know were there till now. It'd been a long ass time since he'd kissed anyone.

They finally broke apart, honestly not even sure how long that had been.

“Well...” Tess said at last. “Think I wanna double time getting back.”

Joel chuckled a bit, the first genuine one in god knows how long. “I can agree with that.”

With a sly smirk, Tess lead him out and they made their way carefully back inside the wall.

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Outbreak Day!!!
> 
> Still sounds really weird to say that. But yes, this is the day all hell broke loose in Joel's, and everyone elses, world. 
> 
> This...ended up quite a bit longer than I had intended. I just...sorta got lost in it. I re-wrote the ending quite a few times though, still not sure I like it. I wanted to go there but not really, GO THERE. Hopefully it's alright though.


End file.
